4 Responses

1. wuzzamad

   January 9th, 2010 at 7:48 am

   1

   Having used both programs, I would definitely recommend MS Money over Quicken any day of the week. Both are very similar in features, they will both allow you to create budgets, make charts of what you spent money on vs. income, checkbook regisers, online capabilities, etc. But, MSM streamlines it together much more efficiently and is much easier to use and navigate thru than Quicken. MS Money is the only piece of software that Microsoft ever did right. I use Quicken now b/c it came free with my computer, and while it isn’t terrible, its not quite as user-friendly as MSM and I do have semi-frequent problems with Quicken locking up and crashing. If you have a lot of accounts, stocks, investments, etc. etc. Quicken may be better as it has a ton of options suited for the power banker, but for the average home banker’s needs, MSM is simple, powerful, more reliable and a bit cheaper too.
   Both companies offer free trials, links are below.
   Hope this helps.

2. websterj

   January 9th, 2010 at 7:48 am

   2

   PearBudget

3. Talk to me.

   January 9th, 2010 at 7:48 am

   3

   I have found that if you are computer smart, just a good excel program can help you out. Help keep you organized and other. Also, if you are not Crown Finacial Ministries has a great program that will help you build saving and help get you out of debt.
   They are both good programs, but look online, there are some that are free that can help.

4. MJM

   January 9th, 2010 at 7:48 am

   4

   Well, good advice so far.
   http://www.crown.org – will give you “Christian” faith-based financial tools, workbooks, sofware, etc…for budgeting and basic financial management…and probably one or the cheapest options.
   Money… – Is a good overall financial management program…not as “tech-heavy” daunting as the Quicken programs…but a bit “headier” then the Crown stuff.
   Quicken… – Excellent for Tech/Computer intense people…it can be intimidating for first timers…community colleges teach classes on “how to use Quicken” and people write books with “tips” on how to use it… in other words… not so simple to figuire out on your own as a first time user… unless you are a pretty darn good Tech/computer skilled individual already… a good “step up” though for those with practice.
   ***Excel… if you’re a generally organized person and know how to make your own spreadsheets…feed info from one sheet to the next, etc… you could make a simple program on Excel all by your lonesome…and a lot cheaper than Money or Quicken…heck, could even take a course on it.
   I recommend, if you are just starting out… Crown…. from what you described… Crown is exactly what you are looking for and it doesn’t have all the other more expensive stuff you don’t need. (you can embrace or ignore the Faith-based references as you choose)